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Both players seemed to come out of nowhere. Bergenheim, a wing with 14 goals in 80 regular-season games, has seven in 11 playoff games and was tied for the playoff lead entering Thursday. Fedotenko had 17 goals in 77 games in 2003-04 and 12 in 22 playoff games, tied for second in the postseason with teammate Brad Richards.

"A pain in the (rear end)" for opponents, Andreychuk called Bergenheim and Fedotenko.

"We all know what Ruslan did," Andreychuk said Thursday. "He's a guy who went to the front of the net and got crosschecked and found a way to score goals. Bergie is doing the exact same thing."

Like Fedotenko, he seems immune to postseason pressure.

"When there's a tough game, mostly I feel very calm," said Bergenheim, who had four goals in the four-game Eastern Conference semifinal sweep of the Capitals. "You just focus on playing the best you can. You focus on the task. When you focus on what you're doing or should do, you don't think about the pressure or what game it is. 'Oh, my God, is it overtime, or Game 7.' You just focus on what you should do on the ice. When the game is bigger, focusing on the next shift is key."

Bergenheim said three things have helped him: linemates Dominic Moore and Steve Downie "setting me up for nice plays"; the mind-set of "playing relaxed," and better positioning.

"I've been a little further away from the net," he said. "That has given me better angles to shoot on, and maybe I've been a little more open and my linemates have found me better."

"To win in the playoffs, you have to have those guys who step up and compete, a guy who scores big goals for you," Andreychuk said. "No matter what series you're looking at, you always need one of those."

REST AS WEAPON: The Lightning might not practice again until Sunday, which would give players three days instead of the originally planned two to recuperate from playing five games in eight days — Game 7 against the Penguins in the first round and four against the Capitals from April 27 to Wednesday.

"I'm happy to take some time away from the game and rejuvenate, enjoy my family for a few days and get back to work," W Marty St. Louis said. "It's nice to disconnect for a few days."

"It's a very tough time to play hockey," coach Guy Boucher said. "You're so focused every day on being better, on details of performance, it's hard for the families, hard for wives and girlfriends and kids. We owe it to them to spend the next two days with them."

GOALIE WATCH: With decisions to make next season at goaltender — starter and backup — GM Steve Yzerman is keeping an eye on Viktor Fasth, the top goalie in Sweden's elite league. "We're aware he's had a good season and will watch him play at the world championships (currently being played in Slovakia)," Yzerman said. Fasth, 28, had a 2.26 GAA and .925 save percentage in 42 games for AIK.

BOTTOM LINE: Capitals owner Ted Leonsis in his blog praised the Lightning as "the better team" and said his players "were not resilient."

"Their role players outplayed our role players," Leonsis wrote. "Their highest-paid players outplayed our highest-paid players. In fact, their role players outplayed our highest-paid players. Their goaltending was better. Their special teams were better. They adhered to their coaches' system better than we adhered to our coaches' system."

WINNING: The seven straight postseason wins of Dwayne Roloson, 41,are one off the record for goalies older than 40, the Elias Sports Bureau says. Jacques Plante in 1969 won eight in a row for the Blues.